Revision as of 00:20, 26 March 2008

Most of today’s libraries provide a wide range of opportunities for people with diverse needs and interests and have a deepcommitment to serving people of
diverse backgrounds, including serving speakers of languages other than English. The most popular and successful activities offered for non-English speakers are English as Second Language classes, language-specific materials and collections, computer use and classes, and storytimes. Spanish is, by far, the most supported non-English language in public libraries, followed by Asian languages. Literacy is both a barrier for non-English speakers and is what most libraries support in specially designed services and programs for these patrons. This page provides links to some of the resources needed to continue to build services to meet these needs.

Bibliography and Resources

Serving Non-English Speakers in U.S. Public Libraries: 2007 Analysis of Library Demographics, Services and Programs: a report by the ALA Office for Research and Statistics, Office for Literacy and Outreach Services, Office for Diversity, and the Public Programs Office. Chicago: American Library Association, 2008.

Bibliotecas Para La Gente, the Northern California chapter of REFORMA, a site with reviews, booktalks, and Spanish story time ideas, along with links to websites on awards, cultural resources, holidays, educational resources, and periodicals in Spanish.

American Reads Spanish, an initiative of the Spanish Institute for Foreign Trade and the Spanish Association of Publishers Guilds to increase the use and reading of our language through the thousands of libraries, schools and book stores in the U.S.